Hey Brits: Who Ranks Higher In UK Boxing Lore? Hatton Or Nas

[chrisJS]

I think Hatton had the better win (Tszyu) and more fans, but Hamed not only had the more entertaining style and better talent level he also had a better career though some would say he underachieved and Hatton overachieved.

I think Calzaghe and Lewis were by far the two greatest British boxers of the last 25-30 years.

An answer that depends on who you ask.

If you ask me, Naz was the superior fighter, has a better overall legacy and is one of the greatest 126 pounders of all time. Plus he revitalised boxing in the late 90s, was a star on both sides of the pond AND was teh first to introduce that level of money in the lower divisions, still somewhat unmatched in that regard.

Where do you think he fits in all-time at 126? I think based purely on his 126 days he has a claim to being near Morales, Barrera, Marquez and Pacquaio though on an overall pound for pound level he's far behind those guys because of what they achieved across other divisions too. I'd put him ahead of Pacquaio purely based on their 126 careers.

As far as 126 history he'd have to be firmly behind Pep, Saddler, Sanchez, Pedroza, Nelson, Arguello, Attel, Armstrong, Saldivar, Driscoll, Kilbane, Chocolate, Jofre, Miller etc; off the top of my head. It's a very deep division.

[boliodogs]

An answer that depends on who you ask.

If you ask me, Naz was the superior fighter, has a better overall legacy and is one of the greatest 126 pounders of all time. Plus he revitalised boxing in the late 90s, was a star on both sides of the pond AND was teh first to introduce that level of money in the lower divisions, still somewhat unmatched in that regard.

Naz wasn't as good as Antonio Barrera who easily beat him by ud by many points when both boxers were in their primes and both were 27 years old.

[boliodogs]

I don't live in the UK but Naz was clearly a better fighter pfp than Hatton.

[Kezzer]

I think Calzaghe and Lewis were by far the two greatest British boxers of the last 25-30 years.

I still think calzaghe was over-rated, I think Froch would’ve beaten him to be honest. Froch was still a relative novice then and calzaghe wouldn’t take the gamble.

[chrisJS]

I still think calzaghe was over-rated, I think Froch would’ve beaten him to be honest. Froch was still a relative novice then and calzaghe wouldn’t take the gamble.

It wasn't a case of not taking the gamble. Calzaghe had bigger fish to fry such as a major unification was Kessler and then big names in America in Hopkins and Jones. I also heard that Froch was approached with an offer around that time (not sure if after Lacy or just before Kessler I can't remember the specifics) and said he wasn't quite ready and declined the fight.

[soul_survivor]

I think Hatton had the better win (Tszyu) and more fans, but Hamed not only had the more entertaining style and better talent level he also had a better career though some would say he underachieved and Hatton overachieved.

I think Calzaghe and Lewis were by far the two greatest British boxers of the last 25-30 years.

Where do you think he fits in all-time at 126? I think based purely on his 126 days he has a claim to being near Morales, Barrera, Marquez and Pacquaio though on an overall pound for pound level he's far behind those guys because of what they achieved across other divisions too. I'd put him ahead of Pacquaio purely based on their 126 careers.

As far as 126 history he'd have to be firmly behind Pep, Saddler, Sanchez, Pedroza, Nelson, Arguello, Attel, Armstrong, Saldivar, Driscoll, Kilbane, Chocolate, Jofre, Miller etc; off the top of my head. It's a very deep division.

I never thought about making a top 10, 20 or whatever list for 126, I might have to.

Pep, Saddler, Jofre and those others would def be ranked higher than Naz but I reckon he'd be somewhere in a top 20. he pretty much dominated the division and beat every title holder there was, all the while outclassing or koing them with ease.

Agreed that MAB, Morales, Pac etc rank higher p4p, their careers across divisions was exceptional but Naz might be on par just looking at 126.

[RJJ-94-02=GOAT]

I love Ricky and have had some of the best nights of my life going to his fights but Naz was the superior fighter

[Metho_4u]

True, but Naz's talent was top-drawer. If he had the discipline of someone like Floyd, he could have been undisputed champion at 126 for years.

Its possible, but he didn't. I remember watching that fight and just was amazed how hamed just was getting a real boxing lesson.

[Metho_4u]

Where was Hamed at his best on the p4p list? Ricky at one point was 3rd or 4th.

[chrisJS]

I never thought about making a top 10, 20 or whatever list for 126, I might have to.

Pep, Saddler, Jofre and those others would def be ranked higher than Naz but I reckon he'd be somewhere in a top 20. he pretty much dominated the division and beat every title holder there was, all the while outclassing or koing them with ease.

Agreed that MAB, Morales, Pac etc rank higher p4p, their careers across divisions was exceptional but Naz might be on par just looking at 126.

I think he has a claim to being in the top 20. I think Featherweight is very deep though and I haven't done a definitive ranking.

He held the WBO (helped make that organization legit), IBF and WBC titles and vacated them all. He'd have held the WBA too but Vazquez had to vacate in order to fight him. Vazquez was shopworn then I don't think that's a great win but his wins of Bungu, Johnson, Kelley standout as top wins and then though he wasn't as aesthetically pleasing he still got clear wins over Medina, Soto, McCollough that add depth to his resume.

The two major strikes against him are that Barrera was by far his best opponent and he never fought anybody near Barrera's class (i.e someone who would be considered pound for pound) and he was beaten rather easily there and he didn't come back to at least try and regain some luster. I don't think he'd have beaten the Fab Four of that era but it would have really helped him to have come back and gotten some other top guys on his resume like Gainer, Tapia, Harrison, Ayala, Espadas etc;